Apparent lightning strikes at Mt. Bachelor knocked out power to two lifts Tuesday, shutting them down for most of the day.

Spokesman Andy Goggins said the Red and Pine Marten chairs, both on the west side of the mountain, were apparently struck by lightning between the close of operations Monday and the start of the day on Tuesday. The strikes disabled both lifts’ electrical systems, Goggins said, but no other damage has been observed.

Resort operators opened Pine Marten on auxiliary power for a short time Tuesday, Goggins said, but shut down the lift due to wind, snow, freezing rain and other storm-related complications. Red, often run as a backup when Pine Marten is not operating, remained closed throughout the day.

Goggins said Pine Marten was running on auxiliary power on Wednesday, and the resort expects to be running the lift on its primary power source soon. Lifts run at the same speed whether they are running on primary or auxiliary power, he said.

Lightning strikes during the resort’s skiing and snowboarding season are uncommon, Goggins said.

“It’s super rare in the wintertime, obviously, to have any type of lightning, especially striking the lifts,” he said “It’s more something we watch for in the summer months when we’re open for summer operations, and we can get those fall storms.”

— Reporter: 541-383-0387, shammers@bendbulletin.com